We use the simple past tense to talk about finished events. Note that the simple past tense is used when we say when something happened. If there is no time reference, we are more likely to use the present perfect tense to talk about finished events.

Study the examples given below.

• I saw him yesterday.
• His grandfather died two years ago.
• They left in the morning.

Worksheet 1

Fill in the blanks with the simple past tense form of the verb given in the brackets.

1. I ……………… your father yesterday. (meet)

2. He ………………. me that you were coming. (tell)

3.What ………………… you do then? (do)

4. Rani ………………….. in the morning. (leave)

5. I …………………. your letter in the morning. (receive)

6. I …………………. German in Germany. (learn)

7. Babar …………………. Rana Sanga at Kanwaha. (defeat)

8. It …………………. yesterday. (rain)

9. The girl ………………… something on the wall. (write)

10. The light ……………….. out when I was doing my homework. (go)

11. The children ………………. Merrily. (dance)

12. I ………………… well last night. (sleep)

13. I …………………. four movies last week. (watch)

14. She ………………… the books on the table. (put)

15. Edison …………………. newspapers when he was a child. (sell)

Answers

1. met, 2. told, 3. did, 4. left, 5. received, 6. learnt, 7. defeated, 8. rained, 9. wrote, 10. went, 11. danced, 12. slept, 13. watched, 14. put, 15. sold

Worksheet 2

Fill in the blanks with the simple past tense form of the verbs given in the brackets.

1. She ……………………… (not recognise) me.

2. I ……………………. to the manager about my problems. (talk)

3. She ……………………. another phone last week. (buy)

4. Nobody ………………….. the poor man. (help)

5. After searching for hours, I …………………….. my cat. (find)

6. I ……………………. to give it a try. (decide)

7. I ………………… the red shirt. (choose)

8. Who ……………………. this window? (break)

9. I ……………………… an interesting story yesterday. (read)

10. What ………………….. (do) you do then?

11. He ………………… (not accept) the offer.

12. I ……………………. (take) the less travelled road.

13. Rani …………………. her violin. (bring)

14. When I ……………….. (write) to him he ………………. (come) at once.

15. The police ……………………… the suspects. (question)

Answers

1. did not recognise, 2. talked, 3. bought, 4. helped, 5. found, 6. decided, 7. chose, 8. broke, 9. read, 10. did, 11. did not accept, 12. took, 13. brought, 14. wrote, came, 15. questioned

Worksheet 3

Fill in the blanks with the simple past tense form of the verb given in the brackets.

1. He …………………….. his house last week. (sell)

2. The judge ………………….. him. (acquit)

3. He …………………… not finish the job. (can)

4. They ……………………. a doctor. (consult)

5. I ……………………… to them. (speak)

6. They …………………… down my application. (turn)

7. We …………………… around the neighbourhood. (go)

8. The dog …………………… after me. (run)

9. Who …………………… the first prize? (win)

10. I ……………………… a cake yesterday. (bake)

11. The cat …………………….. the milk. (drink)

12. You ……………………. very little food. (eat)

Answers

1. sold, 2. acquitted, 3. could, 4. consulted, 5. spoke, 6. turned, 7. went, 8. ran, 9. won, 10. baked, 11. drank, 12. ate

Worksheet 4

Fill in the blanks with the past simple form of the verb given in the bracket.

1. I ………………………….. him yesterday. (meet)

2. She ………………………….. me a liar. (call)

3. Raju ………………………….. another window yesterday. (break)

4. I ……………………….. to post the letter. (forget)

5. I ………………………………… a lot of mangoes yesterday. (eat)

6. I ……………………………. that he was lying. (think)

7. She …………………………. out of the window. (look)

8. I ………………………… home after waiting for an hour. (go)

9. She ………………………….. to take the tablet. (refuse)

10. She ………………………… gallons of water. (drink)

11. They ………………………… the medal back. (bring)

12. I ……………………….. a laptop for my kid sister. (buy)

13. She ………………………… a famous writer. (become)

14. The dog …………………………… after the car. (run)

15. I …………………………… the doorbell twice. (ring)

16. We ………………………….. across the river. (swim)

17. Birds ……………………….. above the trees. (fly)

18. Water ……………………………. under the river. (flow)

Answers

1. met, 2. called, 3. broke, 4. forgot, 5. ate, 6. thought, 7. looked, 8. went, 9. refused, 10. drank, 11. brought, 12. bought, 13. became, 14. ran, 15. rang, 16. swam, 17. flew, 18. flowed